


Down by the River

by AceAceBaby



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: And then they kissed, Canon Era, First Time, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, Mutual Pining, but it's Merlin and Arthur instead of Rupert and Amir, it's just the river scene from the two princes podcast, messing around in water, water fight devolves into kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-18 13:01:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28743660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceAceBaby/pseuds/AceAceBaby
Summary: Arthur and Merlin have been sent on a surveying mission alone, and neither of them will admit their feelings for each other. For now.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 72





	Down by the River

**Author's Note:**

> I know I'm extremely late to the Merlin party, but I couldn't resist with this idea.

It had been a long two weeks of traveling, and Arthur and Merlin still had two weeks left in their journey across the kingdom. Why Uther had decided Arthur was the man for the survey of all the crops for harvest this year was beyond him, but he couldn’t say he didn’t appreciate the time away. Being a prince had its benefits for sure, but sometimes Arthur felt overwhelmed with the constant spotlight on his life. He couldn’t go anywhere without someone talking to him, whether it was a knight bringing an order from his father, some commoner stammering in awe, or Merlin with some recent problem that has arisen. The last one he didn’t mind so much, he had grown very close to Merlin in the years they had known each other. Recently though, Arthur had been confused about some of the feelings he had towards his servant. Like the fact that his heart leapt every time Merlin walked into the room, or how his dreams had Merlin at the center of them more and more. Arthur felt a hunger, a desire that he had never felt for a man before. But for now, he had to put all those feelings aside, the two of them were on a mission from the king after all. 

Uther had decided out of the blue a few weeks back that he needed to do an extensive survey of his kingdom. He had also decided that this would be a perfect task for his son Arthur to complete. It was more of a punishment really, Arthur had recently spoken back to his father and called him a few things that did not strengthen their relationship, that’s for sure. So, in order to put Arthur back in his place, Uther sent him and his manservant to do the survey as opposed to a few knights. Arthur had protested initially of course, but that only seemed to make Uther more adamant about it. The first two days were miserable as neither Merlin nor Arthur wanted to be on the road for weeks at a time, but after they settled into a rhythm, both of them started to actually enjoy themselves.

Merlin was, unlike Arthur, initially excited about a long journey for just the two of them. Also unlike Arthur, Merlin was not confused about his feelings for the handsome prince. Merlin had grappled with his feelings of attraction and desire for many months now, but he dared not show his affection. The fear of the repercussions of that outweighed the deep desire in his heart. If he made an advancement on the young prince and was turned down, he could lose his job, his home, and knowing Uther, possibly his life. No, Merlin was deeply in love, but he was not yet ready to risk not only his life but also Gaius’ as well. These feelings were the initial cause of the excitement, Merlin could not wait to spend five weeks with Arthur, alone. The excitement quickly drained once they got on the road though, long dusty days full of riding and working were not as romantic as Merlin initially thought they would be. 

After Merlin and Arthur had created a sort of routine with their life on the road, both of them slowly became more relaxed. Combining hours of riding, dusty air, and less than gourmet meals was not the most calming environment, but they made the most of it. They soon grew accustomed to waking up with the sun, having Merlin cook all the meals (Arthur couldn’t cook for the life of him), and sleeping next to each other in the small tent Uther provided, also part of the punishment. It was the two of them against the world, and they grew to love it. While they were riding, they would talk about everything. Telling stories from their pasts, speculating about what their friends were up to while they were away, and even talking about the future.

The morning of their 16th day of travel was surprisingly warm. The weather the past few weeks had been dreary and cold, so when the sun rose that morning and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, it seemed nothing short of a miracle. Arthur awoke first and decided to just lay there for a few minutes and appreciate the world around him. He and Merlin had fallen asleep outside the tent the previous evening. After an unusually long day of riding, they fell asleep lying next to each other, leaning against a log near the fire they had built. Merlin’s head was still resting on Arthur’s shoulder, and Arthur was careful not to disturb him. The forest surrounding them was peaceful, with only the sounds of birds and the wind surrounding the two. It was so calm, Arthur nearly fell back asleep. That was at least until Merlin woke up and nearly tripped over Arthur as he was trying to get up.

“Ouch! Come on Merlin, watch where you are stepping, sooner or later you’ll get us both killed” exclaimed Arthur, rubbing his leg where Merlin had stepped.

“Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean to,” replied Merlin, “I’ll make sure to watch my step in the future.”

“Yes, you do that, and how about something for breakfast?” 

There was a slight pause, and the two of them caught each other’s eyes. Just for a moment, they were lost within each other; the world disappeared and all they could see was the other. Merlin was the first to snap out of it, for when he realized what he was doing, he quickly shuffled away while muttering something about whatever was left over from the previous night. Neither of them acknowledged the moment they shared, and after they finished eating, they both set out for the next village on their list. 

The village Merlin and Arthur were headed towards was still a day and a half’s journey from where they were, so they had a long day ahead of them. By the time lunch had rolled around, both of them were drenched in sweat. They had grown accustomed to cooler weather and the occasional drizzle, so the unusually hot day caught them by surprise. The two boys found themselves dripping with sweat, and unusually stinky.

“Ugh, Merlin. What in the world is that smell? It’s absolutely awful” Arthur exclaimed, his nose visibly scrunched and his hand raised to cover his nose in a fruitless attempt to ease the stench.

Merlin hesitated for a moment before replying. He could lie, but Arthur could always tell when he was lying. “Umm, well, I’m sorry to say that it’s you. I’m afraid the sun and the sweat combined with the fact that you haven’t bathed since we left has left you smelling rather...”

“Ok, ok I get it” Arthur cut him off before Merlin could finish that sentence, better for both of them he thought. “We’ll stop at the next body of water”

“Oh yeah? And how long will that be?” 

“I don’t know, I guess we’ll just have to deal with it until then.” 

Arthur didn’t like the situation any more than Merlin, but there weren't any large bodies of water on the map, so they would just have to keep their eyes out for a small stream or something. They walked for another three hours until they finally found water. They had passed a swamp on the way there, but had both decided that they would rather sit in their own smell than bathe in the algae-infested sludge. It was Arthur who first heard the faint sound of running water.

“Do you hear that?” Arthur asked, carefully stopping his horse and motioning for Merlin to listen. “It sounds like...it sounds like water!” 

Before Merlin had a chance to respond, Arthur took off towards a small patch of trees a little ways from the path. Merlin followed close behind, and as he drew closer, he too heard the sound of flowing water coming from within the trees. When Merlin reached the source of the sound, he discovered a small pond with a creek flowing into it, and Arthur was already off his horse and removing his clothing. Merlin carefully jumped down from his horse, and when he turned back towards Arthur, Arthur was already running into the water. 

“Come on in!” Arthur yelled back to Merlin, who was still standing fully clothed next to his horse. “Don’t be shy, the water isn’t too cold!”

Merlin reluctantly removed his clothing, placing it gently on his horse so as not to get them wet, and started slowly inching his way towards the water. He, unlike Arthur, slowly waded his way in as opposed to jumping. Merlin only got about calf-deep in the water before Arthur ran up beside him.

“Come on Merlin, what are you waiting for” 

“The water’s too cold” Merlin whined.

“You have got to be kidding me, you are such a wimp sometimes!” With this Arthur grabbed Merlin around the waist, slung him over his shoulder, and dove into the water dragging Merlin in with him.

“Hey, now that was just cruel!” Sputtered Merlin, still partially in shock from the frigid water. The pond was shallow enough to stand up in, but still deep enough to thoroughly soak the two of them. Merlin stood there shivering and dripping, glaring at Arthur. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” taunted a grinning Arthur. “I did you a favor you know, one day you will thank me”

“A favor you say?” Merlin asked slyly, “I suppose that means I am in debt and must repay you, sire” With a grin on his face, he lunged back at Arthur, grabbing onto his back and causing them both to fall back into the water.

“You’re dead meat, Merlin! Do you hear me? Dead meat!” Arthur yelled as the two of them descended into a water fight, splashing water in each other’s faces and laughing until their faces hurt. Once again, the fight (if you could call it a fight) devolved into Merlin tackling Arthur into the water. 

Arthur resurfaced first, with Merlin popping up soon after. Both Merlin and Arthur were laughing, and when they looked at each other, their eyes met and their laughing slowed to an eventual stop. Suddenly, they were both aware of how close to the other they were. Merlin looked up at Arthur, his long and unkempt hair dripping and covering his eyes. Almost without thinking, Arthur gently reached out and pushed the hair out of Merlin’s eyes, his hand lingering along the side of his face, stroking his thumb along his cheekbone. Merlin looked at Arthur’s hand, then back at Arthur with a look of confusion. Suddenly, the look of confusion turned to a look of realization. Merlin’s eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to say something, but he found no words could come out of his mouth. Had his throat been this dry a moment ago, how long had his heart been racing? 

This seemed to snap Arthur out of his trance-like state, and he suddenly felt his cheeks begin to flush. He broke away and turned around, trying his best to get back towards shore. How could he have done such a thing? He was sure that through his carelessness he had ruined whatever friendship he had with Merlin, and the next two weeks were going to be the most awkward two weeks of his life. 

Arthur hadn’t managed to get very far when he suddenly felt a hand grab his arm. He spun around in surprise to see Merlin, blushing profusely but smiling like an idiot. Merlin wrapped his free arm around Arthur’s waist, pulled him close, and kissed him. Arthur leaned back and looked at Merlin, equally surprised and overjoyed. Never in a million years had he imagined this moment, and yet here they were.

“I never thought you felt the same way,” Arthur muttered as he leaned back to look Merlin in the eyes, still reeling from what just happened. “I guess I always assumed that you saw me as the Prince and nothing more.”

“No, Arthur,” Merlin whispered, leaning closer to Arthur, “I’ve always loved you. I would do anything for you. Anything.”

“Then kiss me,” Arthur replied, his voice quiet and almost gruff. 

Merlin obeyed his Prince, pulling him close and kissing him deeper than he had ever kissed anyone in his life. One kiss turned to many, their mouths exploring all of each other. The two of them grasped and pulled at each other, having both waited so long for this moment and unable to control themselves. They stumbled back towards the shore, moaning and gasping for air between kisses. When they finally reached the shore after what seemed like an eternity, they collapsed onto each other. Their desperation and passion flowed between them, limbs entangled and bodies pressed together as the two became one. 

Afterwards, they lay next to each other, panting and laughing. Arthur rolled onto his side to face Merlin, pure bliss dancing across his eyes as he watched Merlin. Everything about that moment was perfect, it didn’t matter that they were sweaty, sandy, and dirty lying there on the banks, the only thing that mattered was they were together, and no one could stop them. 

“If we don’t get going soon, it will be too dark to ride much further and we won’t make it to the next village on the list,” Merlin said as he too rolled over to look at Arthur.

“I’m the Prince, I can do whatever I want, and I want to stay here” replied Arthur with a smile.

“Whatever you say, my lord,” said Merlin with an equally large smile, “You are my Prince after all.”


End file.
